1997 Learning to Accomplish Common Goals As president, Caves, an Oklahoma City native, also served as a student representative on the college’s faculty advisory council. “Some of my professors didn’t know I was involved in the student council,” he says. “And then, when I showed up for the faculty advisory meetings, they looked at me differently, knowing that we had common goals of improving the college.” The 1997 graduate says he will never forget the relationships he forged with faculty, students and staff during his time on student council. “The relationships you build with people while attending OSU carry over into the business community. You see some of them from time to time, either at business functions or at OSU events and games.” Participation in student council taught Caves how to use his science background while working with others. He says he took those skills with him to law school at the University of Oklahoma and continues to use them today as an attorney with the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality. He works with national and state industries, guiding them through the regulatory and permitting process for handling and discharging wastewater into streams, lakes and rivers. “It seems like everybody is in student council for a different reason, but their goals are the same. They just want to be successful,” says Caves, who resides with his wife and two children in a Victorian home they are restoring in Chickasha. “Everyone on the council wants to make a difference. They want to be helpful where they can.” Matt Elliott Student council gave Matt Caves the ability to work with people of different backgrounds, and in return, Caves diversified the council roll. Few, if any, within his college major of wildlife and fisheries ecology had previously served on the College of Arts and Sciences Student Council when Caves led the assembly in 1997. As a result, he brought a unique perspective to the table. During his tenure, the student council focused on broadening its base. “At the time only a few majors — including public relations, journalism and political science — were present in the council,” he recalls. STUDENT COUNCIL Oklahoma State University 7
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